Sleepers again hoping to awaken the recruiters with Classic performance

The rosters of the Greater Baltimore Football Classic are dotted with familiar names.

When the top seniors of the Maryland Scholastic Association meet their counterparts from Baltimore County Sunday, at Poly's Lumsden Stadium (1 p.m.), area high school fans easily will recognize the names of Forest Park's Obie Barnes Jr., Gilman's Edward Trusty and Jamal Cox, and Randallstown's Larry Washington.

These players have been in the limelight much of the season and surely deserve the attention.

But so do many others, not as well known. That was the purpose of initiating this all-star game nine years ago. Good players from teams not in the limelight needed a showcase to grab the attention of college recruiters.

Milford Mill's Brian Jordan played in the 1984 contest, went on to the University of Richmond and now plays for the Atlanta Falcons.

Many others have gone on to play college football and then enter the business world. John Carroll's Jeff Ey stood out as a defensive end in the 1985 Classic, then attended Richmond where he played offensive line. He now is employed by Price Waterhouse, certified public accountants.

The list goes on and this year's contest likely will draw attention to a handful of potential college players.

Patterson coach Roger Wrenn (MSA) and Randallstown coach John Buchheister (Baltimore County) cited a couple of players worthy of notice. Consider: Parkville's Chad Freitag. He's a 6-foot-3, 210-pound two-way lineman who played on a team that did not make the playoffs. He only began playing football three years ago, but has made giant strides in that short span.

"Chad's very smart," said Parkville coach Phil Donlin. "He picks things up very quickly and he is very strong."

Ask Freitag how strong and he shrugs his shoulders.

"I bench-pressed 210 pounds to see if I could," he said. "I've only just started weight training and have not yet maxed out [lifted maximum weight]."

As for his grades, there is no hesitation. "I would like to study engineering in college," said Freitag, who has scored 1,130 on the Scholastic Aptitude Test.

Southern's Joe Mondshour, playing on the MSA squad, is another relatively unknown player who is hoping to get spotted by a college recruiter on Sunday.

Mondshour is 5-9, 210 pounds and plays nose guard. He's interested in studying business management in college. He carries a solid B average and will take the SATs Saturday morning.

Neither Freitag nor Mondshour have received letters from any college recruiters.

"I'm not playing a glamour position, so it's difficult to gain recognition," said Freitag.

While only about 1 percent of high school athletes go on to play in college, both Freitag and Mondshour are hoping to buck those odds and extend their playing careers a few more seasons.

Tickets are available at all MSA and Baltimore County schools ($3), or may be purchased at the gate ($5). Proceeds benefit the scholarship fund of the Greater Baltimore Chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame.